The King and the Vezir’s Son
“Of old time there was a king, and that king had a sage vezir. God most high had given that vezir a son; and the people of the world were bewildered at the beauty of that boy. And the king loved him so that he could not endure to be a moment without seeing him, and he never parted from him. So his parents yearned for the boy, but what avail? they had needs have patience through fear of the king. One day, the king while drunk entered the palace and saw this boy playing with another page, and thereupon was he wroth and he commanded the executioner, ‘Smite off the head of this degenerate boy.’ And they dragged the boy out. Thereupon word was sent to the vezir, and he came straightway, and crying, ‘My life! my son!’ went up to the headsman and said, ‘O headsman, now is the king drunk and senseless and he knows not the words he says; if thou kill the boy to-night, to-morrow the king will not spare thee; but will kill thee likewise.’ The headsman said, ‘How should we do? he said to me, “Quick, smite off his head and bring it.”’
“The vezir answered, ‘Go to the prison and smite off the head of some man meriting death, and bring it; at this time the king has not his senses and will believe it.’ And he gave the headsman much gold. The headsman took the sequins and was glad, and went forthwith to the prison and smote off the head of a robber and brought it to the king. The king was pleased and gave the headsman a robe of honor. And the vezir took the boy and brought him to his own house and hid him there. When it was morning and the king’s senses returned, he asked for the boy, and they said, ‘This night thou didst command the executioner that he smote off the boy’s head.’ As soon as the king heard this he fell senseless and his understanding forsook him. After a while his understanding returned and he sat beating his knees and he fell a-weeping. Then the vezir, feigning not to know, came before the king and said, ‘O king, what plight is this?’ Quoth the king, ‘O vezir, where is that source of my life? where is that spring of my soul?’ The vezir said, ‘O king, whom meanest thou?’ The king replied, ‘Thy son, who was the joy of my heart.’ And he cried and wept beyond control, and the vezir rent his collar and wailed and lamented.
“For two months the one business of the king was sighing and crying; during the nights he would not sleep till dawn for weeping, and he would say, ‘My God, shall I never behold his face? mayhap I shall behold it at the resurrection. To me henceforth life is not beseeming.’ Mad words like these would he utter. And he ceased from eating and drinking, and retired from the throne and sought a private house and wept ever, and it wanted little but he died. When the vezir saw this, he one day decked out the boy like a flower and took him and went to the private place where the king dwelt. He left the boy at the door and went in himself and saw that the king had bowed his head in adoration and was praying to God and weeping and thus saying, ‘My God, henceforth is life unlawful for me, do thou in thy mercy take my soul;’ and he was lamenting, recalling the darling fashions of the boy.
“The vezir heard this wail of the king and said, ‘O king, how thou weepest! thou hast forsaken manhood, and art become a by-word in the world.’ The king replied, ‘Henceforth advice profits me not; lo, begone.’ Quoth the vezir, ‘O king, if God most high took pity on thee and brought the boy to life, wouldst thou forgive his fault? and what wouldst thou give to him who brought thee news thereof?’ The king said, ‘O would that it could be so! all the wealth that I have in my treasury would I give to him who brought me news thereof, and my kingdom would I give to the boy; and I should be content to look from time to time on the boy’s face.’ Then the vezir beckoned to the boy and he came in, and went and kissed the king’s hand. As soon as the king saw the boy his senses forsook him, and the vezir sprinkled rose-water on the king’s face and withdrew. When the king’s senses returned he saw the boy beside him and he thought that his soul had gone and returned.
“When it was morning the vezir came before the king, and the king said, ‘As thou hast brought the boy to me whole, go, all that is in my treasury is thine.’ The vezir answered, ‘O king of the world, rather is the wealth which is in my treasury thine; we are both of us the meanest of the king’s slaves. May God (glorified and exalted be he!) grant fortune to our king and long life! We too shall live in thy felicity.’ The king was glad at the words of the vezir, and bestowed many towns and villages on the son of the vezir, and offered up many sacrifices, and gave away much alms.
“O king, I have told this story for that the king may take profit and not do a deed without reflection, that he be not afterward repentant, like that king, and suffer not bitter regret and remorse. That king suffered so great regret and remorse for a vezir’s son, yet this one is the darling of thine own heart. The rest the king knows. Beware, O king, slay not the prince on the woman’s word.” And he kissed the ground and made intercession for the prince for that day. So the king sent the youth to the prison and went himself to the chase.
When it was evening the king returned from the chase and came to the palace, and the lady rose to greet him, and they sat down. After the repast the lady commenced to speak about the youth. The king said, “To-day too such an one of my vezirs made intercession for him and I sent him to the prison.” The lady said, “O king, three things are the signs of folly; the first is to put off to-day’s business till to-morrow, the second is to speak words foolishly, and the third is to act upon senseless words. O king, whatsoever thy vezirs say, that thou believest straightway and actest upon. Satan is of a surety entered into these thy vezirs and into thy boy; in whose heart soever he plants the love of office or of wealth, him in the end does he leave without the faith. Mayhap the king has not heard the story of the King and the Weaver.” The king said, “Relate it, let us hear.” Quoth the lady: